Artful dodgers

SOMERSET — The annual Dodgeball Tournament was started at Somerset Berkley Regional High School about nine years ago after the popularity of the movie about the game. Almost a decade after the movie, the tournament is still going strong at the high school.

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By GEORGE AUSTIN

southcoasttoday.com

By GEORGE AUSTIN

Posted Mar. 13, 2013 at 12:57 PM

By GEORGE AUSTIN

Posted Mar. 13, 2013 at 12:57 PM

» Social News

SOMERSET — The annual Dodgeball Tournament was started at Somerset Berkley Regional High School about nine years ago after the popularity of the movie about the game. Almost a decade after the movie, the tournament is still going strong at the high school.

Students and staff at the high school and family members filled up the gymnasium for the annual event last Tuesday where the students make up teams with different themes for the double-elimination tournament.

Out of the 22 teams, the winner was the Lumberjacks, who scored a last-second victory over The U.

The U went into the final undefeated, so the Lumberjacks had to beat them twice in order to win the tournament. The Lumberjacks won the first game, which set up a winner take all second game between the two teams. With about 20 seconds left in the game, each team had three players left on the floor. Just before the buzzer sounded, Lumberjack Cole Stafford knocked one of the players from The U out of the game to secure the victory for his team.

"It finally felt good," Jack Amarantes, who was on the Lumberjacks team, said. "For four years, I was trying to seal the deal, but this was the year."

The games were four minutes long, with the winner being the team that had the most players left on the floor at the end, unless they could knock all the players on the other team out before time ran out.

Amarantes said Amanda Wyman made some key plays for the Lumberjacks, knocking two players from The U off the court towards the end.

"The strategy was to try to just get the best players out first and then go from there," Amarantes said.

Amarantes said the tournament was fun.

"It gets a little too competitive, I think, sometimes, but it's all in good spirit," Amarantes said.

The student teams also played some teams made up of teachers and at the end, after they won the championship, the Lumberjacks, played an alumni team.

The tournament is organized every year by physical education teacher Ann Mollicone. Money that is raised from the tournament is used to fund scholarships that are awarded to students who are going on to study physical education, physical therapy or athletic training. Some of the money is also used to help fund other student programs and equipment at the high school.